Jose Mourinho not convinced by €50m Real Madrid star amid exit rumours | OneFootball

Jose Mourinho is gearing up for the 2026-27 season, his first as manager of Real Madrid since 2012-13. He’s already managed to add four new faces (Ibrahima Konate, Denzel Dumfries, Marc Cucurella and Bernardo Silva) to his squad, which he has been evaluating ever since agreeing terms with president Florentino Perez.

According to The Athletic, one area of concern that Mourinho was at left-back. He is reportedly not a fan of Alvaro Carreras’ profile, which is one of the reasons why he saw it necessary to push for Cucurella to be signed from Chelsea.

Carreras, who returned to Real Madrid last summer in a €50m deal from Benfica, had a difficult first season back at the Bernabeu. It had started well, but from the point that Xabi Alonso was replaced by Alvaro Arbeloa, he struggled to leave the same impression, which led to him being benched for the final stretch of the 2025-26 campaign.

Left-back has been a problem area for some time

Carreras’ signing last summer was seen as necessary by Alonso, who had Ferland Mendy and Fran Garcia as options prior. The former has struggled with injuries in the last 24 months in particular, while the latter is not seen as having the desired level to be a regular starter, which is why he is set to be sold this summer following Cucurella’s arrival.

Carreras has also been linked with a move away this summer, with Alonso keen to be reunited with him at Chelsea. But despite Mourinho having reservations about him, The Athletic have noted that the 23-year-old is set to stay, given that he is seen as the backup to Cucurella on the left side of defence.

It does make sense for Carreras not to leave this summer, given that Real Madrid cannot afford to rely on Mendy (and/or Garcia if he stays) as backups, but given his value, it would be wise to cash in at some stage if he is not fancied by Mourinho.